Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Horror Games Aren't Scary At All!
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Today was finally the day of my collab stream with Ji-ah unnie!
Thanks to that, I woke up bursting with excitement.
Honestly, it wasn't just excitement—there was a pretty big dose of nervousness too.
Like my first collab with Chae-yoon unnie.
Or my first offline collab with Ra-hee unnie.
The three-way collab with Yuna and Verdi-chan had me on edge too, of course.
But personally, nothing made my heart race like today.
Because it was a one-on-one collab with my absolute favorite, of all people.
I even sprayed some air freshener around the house, which doesn't really smell anyway.
And even staring at the snacks I'd already set out on the table had me fidgeting anxiously.
What if they don't suit Ji-ah unnie's taste?
I did pick mostly the snacks Ellin said she loved on stream.
Oh, right—Ellin mentioned she was weak to the cold.
Should I have cranked the heater up higher?
Ding-dong—
"Ah...!"
While I was pacing around worrying by myself,
the sudden chime of the doorbell sent me rushing to the front door.
"U-Unnie...! Come on in."
"Hey, it's been forever since I last saw my Da-jeong."
"Huh? We saw each other four days ago?"
I blurted out in confusion at the unexpected greeting.
We'd all gathered at the company for a meeting that day, after all.
"It's been forever for me. Do you have any idea how much your unnie's been missing her maknae?"
"Ehehe..."
Ji-ah unnie started petting my head the moment we met,
and I giggled like an idiot, squirming happily.
For some reason, Ji-ah unnie's head pats felt extra gentle...
Not that the other members' weren't, of course.
What was it? It just felt like she truly saw me as her own little sister.
Basking in the joy of reuniting after four days,
we headed inside together.
"Wow, your place is amazing. I've seen pictures, but..."
"Right? The President hooked me up with such a great house. It feels way too luxurious for just me, though."
There were two rooms,
and the kitchen even had a built-in oven.
Plus a full system air conditioner—it was pure luxury to me.
"Hey, so what? Living in a nice place is a good thing. You can just work hard and repay the President with some filial piety, right?"
"Hehe, yeah. I'll work even harder and make it up to her."
"Filial piety" didn't quite fit with the President,
but to me, she really was like a mom.
So it didn't feel off at all.
"Unnie, give me your coat and bag."
"Oh? Sorry, yeah—could you take them?"
"No problem. I'll just hang these up, so go ahead and grab some snacks first!"
I took unnie's coat and bag, scurried to the bedroom,
draped the coat on a hanger, hung the bag next to it, and hurried back to the living room.
"Da-jeong, did you prepare all this just for me?"
Ji-ah unnie, catching my eye, asked with a slightly surprised look.
I wasn't sure what she meant at first,
but then I saw what she was blankly pointing at.
"Huh? Oh, the snacks?"
"Yeah, it's all stuff I like..."
Cheesecake, Mont Blanc, salt bread, and Americano.
All the snacks self-proclaimed bread lover Ellin had gushed about on stream.
I didn't think she'd mentioned them in this world yet, but anyway.
"Actually, I went to this bakery Yuna recommended today. I was browsing and thought of you, so I picked some up."
"You thought of me?"
"Yep!"
To be honest, it was a white lie.
I didn't just happen to think of her—I went specifically to find snacks for her.
But the end result was the same, so it wasn't wrong, right?
Nodding shamelessly with that in mind, unnie blankly scanned the table.
"Thank you... Man, how are you so sweet even in how you talk?"
"Me?"
"Yeah. 'I thought of you so I bought them.' Most people couldn't say something like that."
She let out a wry chuckle, adding, 'At least I couldn't.'
Huh? Really?
I didn't think it was that hard.
I mean...
"I'm always thinking about you, unnie, so I don't know what'd be so hard about it."
I'm always thinking about unnie.
No—about the members.
Since it's someone who's always on my mind, I just said they popped into my head.
I genuinely couldn't understand what was so tough about that.
"Ha..."
"...Unnie?"
When I shared my honest feelings,
unnie clasped her hands together prayer-like,
closed her eyes gently, then snapped them open and shook her head.
"Nope, this won't do. I'm taking Da-jeong home and raising her myself."
"R-Raise me...?!"
She shot up from her chair
and pulled me into a tight hug, forcing me to sit on her lap at the table.
"Your unnie's an only child, so I've always wanted a little sister. No choice—we're going back to my place after the collab."
"Eeeek...?!"
W-Wait, what about the house I'm living in now?!
And unnie's place has her mom there too!
What was she even saying?!
"N-No way...! I'd be a burden to your mom!"
Flail flail—
I struggled fiercely to escape her tightening embrace, but with her way stronger than me, it was no use.
"Pfft, that's your issue? Living together would be fine?"
"W-Well...?"
"It might be awkward?"
"True, but..."
Sure, living together might have its awkward moments.
But more importantly...
"Still, I bet I'd be happy living with you, unnie."
"......"
Yeah, I was certain it'd be fun.
Tilting my head and replying calmly,
Ji-ah unnie stared at me blankly before suddenly burying her face in my shoulder... Huh?
Shiver shiver—!
"Kyaaaaah?! U-Unnie...! That t-tickles...!"
She started blowing raspberries,
rubbing her face and puffing out breaths.
W-What was this!
Was I a cat or a baby or something!
At least she didn't do it on my stomach...!
This was embarrassing enough!
"It's Da-jeong's fault for being so cute. Who told you to say such adorable things?"
"I-I don't know what was so adorable...!"
Sniff.
Ji-ah unnie was starting to act just like Ra-hee unnie.
Someone save me.
There was a bit of commotion, but
we still enjoyed the snacks cozily together,
then finished prepping for the stream.
"This is kinda nerve-wracking somehow."
"You too, unnie?"
"Yeah, it's my first offline collab. Never even done one with the other girls."
Oh, right.
Since I'd been collabing so much with the members,
I'd assumed they'd done some with each other too.
Alright, time for me to step up and be reliable!
Whether we make it through this horror game smoothly might depend on me!
The responsibility was huge!
"It's fine! I'll lead the way like a pro!"
"Pfft, thanks. Guess I'll just follow your lead then, senpai?"
"Yep! Just stick with me!"
I thumped my chest confidently with an "Ahem!,"
and Ji-ah unnie laughed, patting my head.
Hehe, knowing unnie trusted me made me feel even more pumped.
Time to get serious.
"Ready to start, unnie?"
"Yeah."
After getting her okay, I clicked the mouse.
Stream start.
Maybe because we announced the collab ahead of time,
viewers were flooding in twice as fast today.
The Sparrow Squad must've shown up in force.
Before long, we had over 7,000 watchers.
Impressive, considering we hadn't even been live long.
Feeling like most people had arrived,
we exchanged glances, nodded once, twice, counted down, and greeted together.
"Hi everyone!"
"Welcome, everyone."
I went with my usual energetic greeting.
Ji-ah unnie used her signature calm tone, as always.
By the way, Ellin's greeting is "Welcome."
It might seem plain,
but there's lore behind it.
Ellin's concept is a goddess who owns a temple,
and she's gotten into the habit of greeting her followers that way.
Even her end-of-stream is "Good fortune."
She's probably the most committed to role-play in Blue LUV.
The chat exploded with enthusiastic reactions right after our greetings,
the scroll flying up.
We exchanged smiles, relieved everyone seemed happy.
"Hehe, as promised, I invited Ellin unnie to my place today! It's my first time having someone over, so I'm actually super nervous right now."
I tried to play it cool,
but lifting my hands from between my thighs revealed a slight tremble.
Ji-ah unnie laughed "Pfft," leaned toward the mic,
"It's true. Lulu was so tense. We were eating snacks earlier, and she kept asking, 'Is it good? Is it good?' like she was worried."
"Yes, it was delicious. Lulu went to a bakery today and thought of me, so she bought them—and they were all my favorites. The Mont Blanc was the best."
Yeah, unnie had said stuff like that before.
I'd brushed it off as a joke,
but watching her devour the bread today, it might not have been.
"As announced, today Ellin unnie and I will be playing Outpost! It's that hot new horror game that just dropped!"
Hey now.
Just sit back and watch.
No complaining about it being boring later!
"We'll chat more after the horror game—look forward to it! Got it?"
Hmph, unnecessary worries.
Of course, Ji-ah unnie was weak to horror games, so she might be wiped after,
but with me here, we'd breeze through, chat leisurely, and wrap up nicely.
"Whoa... even the first background screen is scary."
Firing up the pre-installed Outpost,
Ji-ah unnie lightly grabbed my arm at the title screen.
I gave her a thumbs-up to boost her courage.
"Don't worry, unnie! I've got you!"
"Uh, yeah. Right. I'll trust my maknae."
"Hehe, yep!"
Ignoring the viewers' doomsaying,
I hit "New Game" to start.
I was dying to see how their faces would change watching the stream.
Heh heh heh!
The start was ordinary.
Viewers bet we'd scream in five minutes,
but I knew better than anyone that wasn't happening.
Horror games rarely jump-scare right away.
They build a quiet, eerie atmosphere,
then drop the enemy when you least expect it—that's the standard.
But to me, who saw through it all, it was meaningless.
Bring it on.
I've seen your type in videos a million times—not scary at all!
Step... step...
But not long after my bold claim,
the growing darkness and ominous vibe gave me chills.
I-Is that a human leg?
That's an arm,
and why are they stacked on the shelves like that?
Swish—
"Eek!"
Oh, just a rat.
I wouldn't bat an eye in real life,
but the sudden noise startled me, you idiot.
"N-Not scary at all, okay? I-I just got surprised because it popped out. Right, unnie?"
"Y-Yeah. Simpler than I thought. Might end too boringly?"
"R-Right."
Exchanging shaky voices,
I moved the character out of the room.
At least the lighting here made it less scary...
Dun dun dun—
Huh? Why'd the BGM change so suddenly?
It felt super urgent...
Oh, right.
The music changes signal a pursuer incoming.
Yeah, that's it.
...Wait. Pursuer?
A few mental leaps later, my spine went ice cold.
With trembling hands, I turned the camera.
A dim figure stood under a faint light beam in the dark hallway ahead.
"Long time no see, toy."
It gripped a massive blunt weapon—hammer? Knife?—
and its grotesque form was beyond human.
"Kyaaaaaaaah!"
"Keeeyaahhh!"
The moment we saw it,
Ji-ah unnie and I screamed in perfect harmony, as if on cue.